Stephen F. Austin holds on to beat McNeese State 80-75

LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) Ty Charles scored seven of his 13 points in the final 90 seconds as Stephen F. Austin fought off a determined McNeese State to open defense of its Southland Conference crown with an 80-75 win on Saturday.

SFA (11-3, 1-0) has won two straight conference titles and 23 consecutive conference victories over two years.

The Lumberjacks were up 50-39 with 15:30 left. McNeese State charged back and took its first lead 60-59 when Shaun Johnson nailed two straight 3-pointers and Keelan Garrett split a pair of free throws with 7:58 remaining. SFA's Trey Pinkney nailed a trey to retake the lead.

Johnson hit a 3 with 1:03 left to tie at 73. Charles answered with a 3-pointer and SFA held on for the win.

Garrett had 26 points for McNeese State (6-6, 0-1).

You May Like

More College Basketball

Sign Up for our Newsletter

Don't get stuck on the sidelines! Sign up to get exclusives, daily highlights, analysis and more—delivered right to your inbox!